Guidewires are employed in noninvasive operations, for example, to enable a physician to navigate to a desired location within the lumen of the body of a patient, and then insert a catheter to the desired location, with the aid of the guidewire. Such guidewires are known in the art. One type of guidewire includes a sensor positioned in its tip. The sensor is connected with a pair of wires which pass along the guidewire. The wires are connected to a male connector coupled with the guidewire. The male connector connects with a female connector. The female connector is connected to medical equipment.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,090,052 to Akerfeldt et al., entitled “Guide Wire Having a Male Connector” is directed towards a guidewire which includes a corewire. Electrical leads are connected to the sensor at the distal end of the guidewire. The electrical leads extend along the length of the corewire over a thin flexible sheet partially wrapped around the corewire. The flexible sheet has a wider portion at the proximal end of the guidewire. The electrical leads connect to conductive strips formed on the wider portion of the flexible sheet. The electrical leads and the conductive strips form the general shape of “a flag pole with a flag.” The wide portion of the flexible sheet, with the conductive strips are wrapped around the proximal end of the corewire, thereby forming cylindrical shaped contacts.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,428,336, to Akerfeldt, entitled “Female so Connector” is directed towards a female connector for a guidewire including an insulating hollow housing containing three hollow contact members having the shape of a cylinder. The housing includes an opening for inserting a male connector of a guidewire and three contact seats. The housing further includes means for securing a male connector of a guidewire in the female connector. The hollow contact members are disposed on the contact seats. An interface cable is connected to the contact members. A male connector is inserted into the opening of the housing and is secured in place by the means for securing. The contact members provide electrical contact with the male connector.